Kristen Villebrun and Wendy Bush hoped they wouldn't have to pray for Chedoke Creek, but four years after they first raised alarm about the water's condition, they were part of an Indigenous full moon ceremony to do just that. About 50 people showed up near Princess Point on the dark and frigid Monday evening for the monthly ceremony, which was particularly special as it focused on Chedoke Creek. The body of water that runs into Cootes Paradise had about 24 billion litres of sewage and storm water runoff leak into it due to a gate being left open.
The Vancouver School Board (VSB) says it has worked to find desks for more than 500 students after flooding at an elementary school put the building out of commission for a number of months. School board staff said water pipes at Sir James Douglas Elementary in South Vancouver froze and burst during the recent cold weather, causing extensive flooding. VSB said staff searched for an alternate location for the school's approximately 525 enrolled students.
A flowing river that turns to solid ice in October, freezing pipes and frosty arctic temperatures are all routine for Nunavummiut. But those issues were a first for a water treatment system previously used by the Canadian Armed Forces in places, including Haiti after the 2010 earthquake and the Philippines. Iqaluit has been under a state of emergency since Oct. 12 when fuel was found in the water at the city's treatment plant. Residents have not been able to drink tap water since then.
